Breaking news!

Ok, maybe it's not breaking news in the "CNN" sense of the word, but it is around the Hall household... Payton rolled over yesterday! I had her doing tummy time and she just dropped her head and rolled onto her back. I stared at her like "did you really just do that or did I imagine it?!?" so I put her back on her tummy and she did it again. It was so exciting! Of course when I set up the video camera and put her on her stomach again, she wouldn't do it... but I'll catch it one of these days!

She went from this...

... to this! A prouder mom you could not find :)

Here are some more tummy time pics! I can't get enough of them...







She's growing up so fast!

Ode to maternity leave

This is officially my last week before I go back to work... I go back on Friday the 28th. I have a lot of mixed feelings about it; a part of me is excited to see my coworkers again and get back in a routine, but a part of me is a little heartbroken. My maternity leave has been the happiest, craziest, most frustrating, emotional, blessed, anxious, joyful, exhausting, tearful, and best three months of my life. This little person has completely changed our lives, and only for the better. Every day she grows and explores, and I feel so priveleged to be able to watch her discover the world around her. Three months ago she was brand new; now she can smile at us, coo, kick, and even hold her head up. She recognizes our voices, and her eyes follow us around the room. We can tell just by her cry exactly what she needs, if she's hungry, tired, bored, needs a diaper change, or just needs to unwind. It's only been a couple months, and Kyle and I can't even remember what it was like before a baby! What is a casual dinner and a movie? What is sleeping in? But you know what? We wouldn't change it for the world. :)

Worth every moment!

I got Payton's 2 month pictures, they turned out great!

















So cute! If anyone is interested in ordering them, I scanned them and uploaded them to costco so you could just e-mail or call me and I'll give you the login info.

Payton is starting to hold her head up when we do tummy time! She is not a fan of it though, she'll only do it for a couple minutes and then she's done. I caught it on video!


This was the first time she held it up for so long! I was so proud :)

I'll be sitting up before you know it! Oh, and I'm a little messy :)

She's a pretty good eater and sleeper, she's eating about 6 bottles a day now, and still waking up in the middle of the night for a bottle. She sleeps the rest of the time though without a problem, which is nice. She doesn't think nighttime is playtime! The longest stretch she's had in between meals was 9 hours (starting at 6pm though); usually it averages about 5 or 6. Hopefully she'll be sleeping through the night before we know it!



Kisses from daddy

Kyle has a big test for school coming up, so he's been studying like crazy... which means I get my little girl all to myself until I have to go back to work! It's going to be hard, but I know it will be ok. I'm afraid she's going to forget me because I won't be around all the time, but everyone tells me that won't happen... my mom was a working mom and I certainly didn't forget or feel less of a bond with her, so that makes me feel better. I just can't believe how fast time is already passing... we applied for Wee Care (the daycare at my work) a long time ago, when I was like 12 weeks pregnant. She's still on the waiting list, which is ok because we decided that Kyle is going to stay home with her (he's free!), at least for a while. We'll need daycare eventually because Kyle will start student teaching next February, but for now this works out really good for us. His last day at Sports Authority was last week, so he's officially a stay at home dad! I'm kind of jealous, although it was never really my aspiration to be a total stay at home mom... if I could work part-time it would be perfect, but that's definitely not possible right now. Maybe a little later we'll find that silver spoon! :)

Oh and we finally figured out why my camera sometimes turns her birthmark blue, my cousin suggested it... my camera thinks it's red eye and tries to correct it!

Wish me luck, I'm afraid I forgot how to do everything and will feel like a total idiot on my first day back! I'm sure it will all come back to me, but I've never taken such a long break from scanning before, not since summer break my first year in the program. I'll definitely let you know how it goes!

First Mother's Day

Good morning! I know it's been over a week, but we have been so busy and exhausted that this is the first chance I've had to sit down at my computer for more than 10 minutes. We had pictures done of Payton last week, and although we survived with a few good shots, it was quite the experience. We fed her right before, and she was perfect when we got there; just looking around, relaxing. Not so when I put her in her outfit to start taking pictures! As soon as the lady starting positioning her in different ways she got cranky, apparently she does not like being told what to do! We would just put a pacifier in her mouth and wait until the photographer was ready, then take it out really fast so she could take the picture. This when on for about a half hour until it was finally over... and then of course she was perfectly fine afterwards! Actually she fell right asleep, so I think she was a little tired... either way, we did end up with some cute shots, and we better get used to it because we'll be back several more times this year! :) I don't pick them up until Friday, so everyone can see them soon! Until then, I'll leave you with this little gem...

This is what we call the joy of parenthood! :) A couple days worth of dirty diapers!

We still love her more than anything though :)

We left for Gig Harbor on Friday, and got there in the afternoon. It was a beautiful weekend! We got to see both sides of the family too, which is always great. On Saturday, Kyle and I had a playdate with some friends from college, Drew and Stephanie. They live in Gig Harbor and have an 8 month old son named Colton, and I was so excited to see them and meet eachother's babies. Colton was SO adorable! He was all over the place, crawling and playing with toys... weird to think that will be Payton before we know it!

So stinkin' cute!

I woke up to say hello!

Babies meeting eachother

Drew and Steph with Colton and Payton. It was awesome to see them!

I had a great first Mother's Day. We went to my cousin Carissa's house in Kingston for brunch... her and her husband Chris have a big german shepard named Bear, who was VERY curious about Payton. He kept sticking his nose in her carseat to see what was in there! He wasn't aggressive at all though, just had to figure her out.

Actually, I think he was mostly interested in her carseat toys!

We had her dressed in a cute dress, and that lasted all of about two seconds. She was in it long enough to take a picture though!

Being held by Great Grandma Book

It was such a beautiful day, and since Chris and Carissa live about three blocks from the beach, we decided to go on a walk. So we strapped Payton in the Baby Bjorn and walked to the beach!

Our family :)

Bear really liked playing with Kyle!

We were sad to leave, but glad to be home. All of the travelling can take a lot out of you! This weekend, we are going to do... nothing! :)

Time for an update on Payton herself. With the reflux, it feels like one step forward, two steps back. We'll think she's feeling better, and then have a rough couple days... the Zantac is weight based, so we had her weighed at the doctors office to have her dose adjusted; we'll see if that helps. We're very hopeful :) She weighed 12 pounds 12 ounches yesterday! She continues to grow and amaze us. She started really giggling on Monday, and always has a smile for me when I peek over her bassinet first thing in the morning. The hemangioma on the back of her head has raised a little, and the one by her eye has increased in size, but isn't raising yet. We're watching it closely to make sure it doesn't get too close to her eye or interfere with her eyesight; if that happens, the pediatrician will refer us to a dermatologist. I guess they can either inject it with a steroid, or even laser it off. The doctor was describing a case he saw where the child had one on the side of his neck that grew so big it obstructed his airway! Although a little unsightly, we are very blessed that her "bumps" haven't really affected her thus far.

On Sunday night I was rubbing her head as she was going to sleep (her mama likes that too) and noticed a lump UNDER the skin, right next to her bump. It was squishy and kind of moved around, and to me kind of felt like a little fluid collection or cyst. Finally a couple years of feeling everyone else's lumps at work paid off! I called her doctor's office on Monday to tell them about it, and they wanted to see her the next day. So, we took her in to get it checked out. It didn't feel worrisome, but I wanted the pediatrician to look at it just in case. The doctor was pretty stumped by it; he says he typically sees lumps like that in newborns at the hospital due to trauma in the birth canal, but it was uncommon to show up in 2 month olds. But, who knows how long it's been there! I told him that she was a c-section, but I did try and push her out for about 4 hours, so that was a possibility. He agreed with me that he couldn't think of anything worrisome it could be, but took some measurements of it. We're going back in a couple weeks to see if it grows; if it does, then he'll refer us to a neurologist. I'm sure it's nothing, but I'm glad they're being cautious about it. I think we just have a lumpy baby! :) We go back in about two weeks, and I'll definitely keep everyone updated!

I got a good smile in this one :)


I have a couple of birthday shout outs... My dad's birthday is on Friday, and my little BABY sister is turning 21 on Sunday; I can't believe it! She's already almost a senior in college... I know I'm really not, but it makes me feel old! Happy birthday to two of the most amazing people I know!

Sisters :)

9 weeks old...

We had a busy weekend! Our little family is always going, going, going. Payton is becoming so much fun. She's so much more responsive, and is really starting to play. She LOVES to lay there and kick and flail her arms around, and really only wants to be snuggled anymore if she's tired. If you try and cuddle with her (like I want to do!) when she's really alert, she'll wiggle and squirm until you lay her down, and then she's happy as a clam. She is really starting to "talk" too. She makes lots of funny noises, even surprising herself sometimes! She's also smiling and starting to laugh a little bit, which totally melts our hearts. The reflux medicine has worked wonders so far, she is such a happier baby. I'm so glad we were able to find something that made her feel better!

I LOVE being active!

On Thursday, Payton and I got a special visit from my grandparents. They only came for the day, but had a lot of fun hanging out and watching Payton do her thing. Kyle had to work unfortunately, but we went and visited him and had lunch together. It was great to see them, and we look forward to lots of visits!

Friday afternoon, we headed down to Albany for the weekend. Kyle's little brother Tanner had a baseball game that evening; it was Payton's first game! It was a beautiful day out too...

Uncle Tanner getting ready to bat

Go team! :)

Mom and Dad watching in the stands

Kyle had to work on Sunday, so he and Bryan only reenacted on Saturday. The girls, meanwhile, had a baby playdate! Kyle's cousin AJ and his girlfriend Mindy brought over their baby girl Melina Saturday afternoon and we had a lot of fun showing off our little ones and trading new mom stories. Mindy had to have a c-section too (baby was breech), so we had a lot in common.

Holding eachother's babies...

Melina just turned one month old (she's one month younger than Payton) and she was SO tiny! She just hit the 8 pound mark, so Payton was bigger than her at birth than she is at one month. Mindy is tiny though too, she was complaining that her pre-pregnancy jeans are actually too big for her now. We hate her :)

Mine was never this little!

We even layed the girls down side by side to compare them. They were so cute!



They look like they're about to hold hands! Actually, I was afraid Payton was going to whack her in the face the way her arms were flailing.


Cute little video of the girls side by side. Melina was content to lay there and relax, Payton of course was moving like crazy!

Sue, Tanner and I decided to go on a hike on Sunday. It was a beautiful day, and I need to start getting back into shape! We went to a place in Lebanon called Mcdowell Creek Falls. It was a gorgeous hike, only about 1.7 miles... still kicked my butt though!

Tanner carried Payton in the Baby Bjorn. He was really excited! :)

The falls were beautiful!





I loved being outdoors!

When we got back, we all went out to dinner to celebrate Bryan's 23rd birthday, which is today. Happy birthday Bryan! :)

Sue has been working on painting letters to put up in Payton's room. She finally unveiled them this weekend and they are GORGEOUS! I cannot wait to hang them up! I took two pictures close up so you could see them in detail.



Didn't she do an amazing job?! She based it off the wallpaper in her room!

Next weekend, we're headed up to Gig Harbor. We're spending Mother's Day (my very first!) at my cousin's house. So we're going to rest up this week and then hit the road again!

Here are a few more random pics from this weekend...

I have my uncles wrapped around my little finger :)

Big cheesy grin!

I also like to stick my tongue out :)

Grandma Sue got me a new hat!

Mom's favorite... morning naptime :)

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there!